Florida Party Princess Charged With DUI Manslaughter Following Gruesome Hit-and-Run
Miami, FL – A Miami bartender and college student who dubbed herself the “Party Princess” is now facing serious charges after a fatal hit-and-run accident that killed a local chef.
Karlie Tomica, 20, apparently took her self-proclaimed identity too seriously on the night of January 28th when she was leaving the South Beach club, Nikki Beach, where she worked as a bartender. Tomica left the bar with blood alcohol level three-times the legal limit and struck a well-known chef Stefano Ricolletti who was on his way to work at the Shore Club, the Huffington Post Reported.
“The victim impacted the front end of the charger in as horrific collision,” the State Attorney General’s report stated, CBS Miami reported, “The victim was thrown from the impact and landed broken and bleeding near the entrance of a hotel.”
Ricoletti was killed on impact, and Tomica fled the scene at “a high rate of speed.” According to CBS News, a Good Samaritan followed Tomica in their vehicle to get her to stop but she made evasive maneuvers including several U-turns to lose her pursuer.
The Good Samaritan even pulled up beside Tomica’s car trying to get her to stop and called 911, CBS said.
The SAG reported also stated that Tomica had blood and brain matter in her hair, when police arrived at her Collins Ave. home. Upon exiting her “battered, flesh and blood spattered vehicle,” she refused repeated requests from police to stop, CBS said.
Blood tests taken two hours after the hit-and-run showed Tomica’s blood alcohol level was three-times the legal limit. She is facing numerous charges which include DUI manslaughter, leaving the scene of an accident with injury, DUI property damage and resisting arrest without violence, according to the Huffington Post.
Tomica was initially charged with leaving the scene of an accident, but when the results of the blood alcohol tests came the charges were increased.
Tomica appeared in court last Friday where her bond was increased from $10,000 to $77,000 and the court discovered she was drinking with a fake with a fake ID. She is currently on house arrest until her trial begins. If she is convicted she could face up to 30 years in prison.
Ricoletti’s widow, Patrizia Pesce, has filed lawsuits against Tomica and the nightclub where she drank and worked, Nikki Beach, asserting they allowed her to leave in a highly intoxicated state.
Hit-and-runs are too common, according the American Automobile Association, between 1993 and 2003 there were over 14,000 fatal hit-and-runs nationwide. And more disturbing is the fact that the NHTSA saw a 20 percent increase in these types of accidents between 2000 and 2005. Drunken driving is also a leading cause of fatal accidents in the U.S.
Being intoxicated is one of the many reasons people leave the scene of an accident, others include driving on a suspended license, or with no insurance. Leaving the scene of an accident, especially one with injuries only makes things worse for the driver and can increase the penalties of the crime or traffic violations the offender will be charged with.
